


Moving in with You

by remipachu



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: F/F, Moving In Together, Post-Canon, Post-Graduation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-22
Updated: 2019-04-22
Packaged: 2020-01-24 03:16:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18562798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/remipachu/pseuds/remipachu
Summary: An old piece written for the Love Live! Big Bang on Tumblr. In which Hanayo and Maki attempt to find somewhere to live together.





	Moving in with You

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally published on my Love Live! Tumblr blog (torikoplease) on October 31, 2016.

Graduation had been a whirlwind of excitement, from the ceremony to the parties and private celebrations, but now it was time for business. The initial rush had worn off and now Hanayo Koizumi and Maki Nishikino were starting to make arrangements for moving out.

“This place looks good, doesn’t it, Maki-chan?” Hanayo asked, pointing at the listing for an inexpensive apartment near Akihabara. A warm, not hot, and dry air hung about their dorm room today as the two looked over any sources they could find for where to live. Maki gave the apartment a look, a concerned look coming on her face.

“I don’t know, the reviews for the building don’t seem great…” Maki replied, clicking on the link which displayed a full 3 stars. Hanayo sighed, short and soft, as Maki pulled up another listing and looked at it.

“This apartment has better reviews, and the pictures look nice,” she said, glancing at Hanayo. Hanayo furrowed her eyebrows, looking at the details.

“Well, it seems a little… expensive for us,” she answered, “I’m not sure if we can afford it with the jobs we have now…” A familiar worried tone came about her words, causing Maki to immediately respond.

“My parents are rich, you know,” Maki supplied, placing a hand on Hanayo’s thigh with a smile, “They could probably help us out if we needed it.” Hanayo had a slight pout on her face.

“Yeah, I know…” she whined, “But I’d feel bad if we took too much money from them, you know?” Maki nodded. She herself didn’t like asking others if she could borrow – although her hesitation stemmed mainly from pride, rather than low self-esteem, as in Hanayo’s case.

“I’m sure it’d be okay, but I know where you’re coming from,” she replied. A silence fell between the couple as they continued on their search for somewhere to live. It was a lot harder than either of them had expected, and move-out day was in a week… Both tried not to show it, but anxiety filled their hearts as they looked on the web and the newspapers for anywhere that might suit them.

After a few more hours of searching, Maki and Hanayo chose to call it a day. They decided on a restaurant to go eat at that night (fast food, as usual), and eventually sat down to eat. A sort of solemn air fell around the two as the chatter of the restaurant seemed to fade to a dim buzz.

“I really didn’t think finding an apartment would be this hard…” Hanayo sighed as she ate a french fry. “I mean, adults make it out to be super easy! Were they lying to us?”

“I don’t think so,” Maki replied between bites of a burger, “I think it used to be easier, but times have changed, and they don’t realize it.” After a sip of cola, her face lit up. “Hey, Nozomi and Eli have an apartment, right? Why don’t we ask them?”

“Oh, thash a grea’ idea!” Hanayo exclaimed, swallowing a bite. “Sorry. I mean, that’s a great idea! Let’s go over tomorrow and ask. I’ll text Nozomi-chan right now.” Putting down her burger, she quickly pulled out her phone and texted Nozomi as fast as she could. When she finished, she exhaled, a sweet sound of a small bit of relief in a confusing time.

“Awesome. I’m sure they won’t mind,” Maki mused.

The two finished their meal and went home. Nozomi agreed to meeting with them tomorrow at a cafe with Eli, and that night Maki and Hanayo slept a little bit easier than the night before.

–

The scent of baked goods and coffee drifted around the cafe. The day was bright and sunny, the temperature warm but not hot, and a comfortable mood settled around Nozomi and Eli and Maki and Hanayo when they sat down to eat and converse.

“So, you two are looking at getting your first apartment together!” Eli opened the conversation, a smile on her face. “Oh, I’m so happy for you two! This is a really exciting time in your lives.”

“Our daughters are all grown up and living together, Elicchi~” Nozomi said in a sing-song voice, a slight teasing tone to it.

“I’m not your daughter, Nozomi…” Maki pouted. Hanayo laughed and put a hand on her hand with a smile.

“Yeah, it is pretty exciting!” Hanayo replied, “But we’re also really nervous. It’s a lot harder than we expected to find a good place, and I wish we had started looking sooner.” Hanayo timidly bit into the chocolate croissant she held in her hand, her eyes looking at everything but her comrades. Maki leaned into her, and the two smiled.

“There’s no need to worry, Hanayo-chan,” Nozomi declared, “With us on your side, there’s no way you won’t come out of this satisfied!” Eli gave her a look that was sure to mean “Is that so?”. Nozomi winked and gave a thumbs up.

“Well, that’s not entirely true…” Eli admitted with a laugh, “But we do have good advice to give you.”

“I really appreciate it, and so does Maki-chan… Even if she won’t admit it.” Hanayo thanked the somewhat older couple. Maki pouted at Hanayo, who stuck out her tongue.

“Hey, I do appreciate it,” Maki replied defensively. Her tone then softened. “But really, you two, thanks.”

“Of course!” Eli accepted the thanks cheerfully, “Now, first of all. When you were looking online, were you sorting by price or reviews?”

“Uh, w-we actually didn’t search by either of those…” Hanayo answered nervously, “We were mostly going by proximity to where we want to work.”

“I see…” Nozomi replied, a sage tone to her voice, “Well, I think you should go by reviews first. You don’t want to end up in some dinky place with cockroaches for fellow residents, do you?”

“That’s what I was thinking,” Maki supplied, “Quality is really important to me.”

“Well, yeah, you’re rich,” Nozomi teased. Maki shot her a glare, causing Nozomi to giggle. “But yeah. Search quality first. That’s what Elicchi and I did. Don’t go under four stars. After you’ve narrowed it down to that, you can start searching by price.”

“Now, I know that more quality places are gonna be more expensive,” Eli supplied, “But they don’t have to be completely budget-blowing. I’m sure you two can find someplace that’s not too expensive but still isn’t a roach motel. Now, where did you want to live?”

“We were thinking hopefully somewhere close to Tokyo, but just in the region is fine, too.” Maki responded.

“The best case scenario is the greater metropolitan area,” Hanayo added.

“I see, I see…” Nozomi replied, “I bet you can find somewhere. We sure did. Elicchi, did you bring the laptop?”

“I did!” Eli answered. She bent down to pull the laptop out of her bag, and set it on the table. Upon opening it, Maki and Hanayo found that the website they had been using for apartment listings was already up. Eli clicked to sort by rating and scrolled down to the four-star listings.

“These are probably gonna be your cheapest options, but there’s no harm in looking at the higher-rated ones.” Nozomi explained, “Let’s see, this one is pretty cheap, that one’s kind of pricey… Oh! What about this one? Is this in your budget?” Nozomi clicked on an apartment just outside of the main city for 96,500 yen a month.

Both Hanayo’s and Maki’s eyes widened as they looked at the views for the apartment. It was simple, of course – 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom, basic kitchen and a living room – but it would certainly do the job, especially for a first apartment. Nozomi and Eli had smiles on their faces as they watched the younger couple review the apartment.

“So, what do you two think?” Eli asked, “Will this do?” When she got no response, she giggled. “Hellooo? Earth to Hanayo and Maki?” The two snapped out of their trance and looked at Eli.

“O-oh, yeah, that looks great!” Maki replied, “When do you think we should check it out?”

“Hmm, Nozomi and I went the next day after we found it…” Eli mused, “Maybe you should do the same? Give yourselves a bit to think over it.”

“Don’t think this is your only option, either!” Nozomi chimed in, “Look at a couple other places, too. Limiting yourselves is not a good idea.”

“Yeah, we’ll look at some others, don’t worry.” Maki responded.

“For example, how about this one…?” Eli continued.

The two pairs spent a couple more hours at the cafe with each other, looking at apartments and then catching up with each others’ lives. After topics of conversation waned and eventually disappeared, everyone said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.

“Nozomi-chan and Eli-chan are really helpful, huh?” Hanayo beamed as she and Maki walked to the bus station. Unable to help herself, Maki took Hanayo’s hand before replying.

“Yeah, they really are,” she agreed, “Thanks for coming with me.”

“Of course!” Hanayo exclaimed. “This is gonna affect our life together. I wouldn’t want to miss it for the world.”

Upon reaching the bus stop, they kissed and sat down. The two didn’t have long to wait before the bus arrived and they were on their way back to the dorms. Soon enough, Maki and Hanayo arrived home, and they enjoyed a nice dinner of tomato-based curry and rice.

–

At exactly 6:30am the next morning, a shrill alarm rang throughout the dorm. A minute passed, then another, before Hanayo finally groaned and turned it off. A thump sounded as she threw herself back into bed, unwilling to wake up this early without even having school.

But inevitably, she had to get up. Maki slept next to her, breathing deeply, as Hanayo stumbled to the coffee maker. She pulled out a slightly stale piece of melon bread as she poured the pre-ground beans into the machine, filled it with water, and turned it on. Hanayo yawned deeply between bites of bread, growing even hungrier as the scent of brewing coffee wafted through the dorm.

The beeping of the coffee maker announced that the “liquid of life”, as a sleep-deprived Maki once called it, was finished. Right on cue, Hanayo heard a stirring from their bed. She smiled as Maki, wild-haired, slowly rose from the bed and shuffled over to the coffee machine, dragging blankets at her feet.

“Morning, Maki-chan,” Hanayo greeted softly, pressing a kiss to her girlfriend’s forehead. Though she only got a low grumble as a response, she smiled and giggled with love for Maki. A tuft of steam came in between their faces as Maki poured her coffee, causing Maki to recoil back. Swiftly, Hanayo caught her and gave her a grin, making sure the coffee pot in Maki’s hand didn’t fall. Through her sleepy haze, Maki could only blink in response.

One cup of bitter black coffee later and the readhead was nearing functionality. During the slow process of Maki waking up, Hanayo had already dressed herself and pulled out an outfit for Maki to wear. Just as Maki drained the last tiny drops of coffee from her mug, Hanayo sat down to have her own cup (but nowhere near as black as Maki’s. Hanayo could only stand coffee that was almost half creamer). Maki looked over at her girlfriend.

“Do you want me to sit here with you, or…” she began. Hanayo shook her head, motioning to their bed.

“Nah, I’m fine,” she answered, “go get dressed. We should get there at 8:30 and I want to have time to stop by the cafe for a little breakfast. I’ll drink my coffee quickly.” Nodding her head, Maki went to put her clothes on.

Before long, both Maki and Hanayo were ready to leave. Hanayo turned off the coffee machine, unplugged everything, and switched the lights off as Maki grabbed both of their purses and opened the door for them to leave. The door shut with a small bang as the couple left the dorms, hand in hand.

–

Their trip to the cafe was a short one. Hanayo got a bagel with blueberry cream cheese – her personal favorite from that cafe – and Maki a muffin. By the time that they got their orders, it was 8 o’clock, and the apartment they were going to view was halfway across Tokyo. They rushed to the train station in a blur of honking cars and busy sidewalks and made it just before the doors closed. Hanayo and Maki stood panting, unable to find a seat but glad to have made it as the train took off.

“Are you ready to see the apartment?” Hanayo asked. Unfortunately, over the noise of the train, Maki was unable to fully hear her.

“Can you repeat that?” she asked, raising her voice.

“I asked if you were ready to see the apartment,” Hanayo repeated. Maki looked side to side, gave Hanayo an “eh” look, and shrugged.

“I didn’t really think of it as something to be ready for,” she replied, “But I guess so. What about you?”

“I’m a little nervous,” Hanayo admitted, “I don’t really know why. I guess I’m a little worried about what they’ll think of us searching for an apartment together as a couple…” A look of realization came over Maki’s face.

“…Oh.” she said. She looked down. “I hadn’t really thought about that. Well, if anyone tries to say anything about it, I’ll make them think twice.” Maki blushed as her voice lowered. “Nobody hurts my Kayo-chan.” After she said that, Hanayo’s eyes lit up and a smile crossed her face. She grabbed Maki’s hand and laced their fingers together as they leaned against a pole.

“Thanks, Maki-chan,” Hanayo whispered, “I feel better now.”

A comfortable silence settled over the two of them for the rest of the train ride. They got off at their stop with just enough time to make it to the apartment complex at exactly 8:30. Before walking in, they shared a chaste kiss and let go of each other’s hands.

“Hello, and welcome to the Ohara Apartment Complex!” the receptionist greeted as the couple entered. “How may I help you?”

“Hello, ma’am,” Hanayo began, “We’re here because we’re interested in an apartment listing. Hold on, let me check which one it was…” A quick search on her phone led her to the listing. “Ah! It’s apartment 11 on floor 7. Would we be able to check it out? I apologize for not setting up an appointment.” The woman sitting at the counter responded with a smile.

“Oh, it’s no problem!” she answered, “Let me see if anyone is currently viewing it…” Quiet fell over the three, only punctuated by the sound of clacking keys and the ticking of a clock on the wall. After around a minute, the receptionist spoke again.

“It is currently free for viewing!” she chirped, “If you take the elevator to the seventh floor, you should see it as the sixth on the left. An assistant will be up as soon as you ring to be let in. Thank you so much for considering Ohara Apartments!”

“Thank you too!” Hanayo answered. With a gentle touch, she led Maki to the elevators on the right of the receptionist’s desk. As the doors to the elevator closed behind them, Maki let out a sigh.

“I hope it’ll be good,” she grumbled, “I don’t really want to look at anywhere else.” She looked away for a second before her eyes widened. “Hey, do you remember what Nozomi and Eli told us to ask about? I think I remember some things, but not everything.”

“Oh!” Hanayo exclaimed. She began quickly rooting through her pockets and her purse. It was a few seconds before she procured a crumpled up piece of notebook paper. “I wrote it all down! With this, we should be able to make sure we’re getting something good.” Maki gave a slight smile.

“I’m glad to hear that.” she said.

Right as she replied, the elevator dinged to announce it opening. The hallway looked basic, like a cheap hotel, but nothing seemed suspicious or out of the ordinary, so the couple considered that a good sign. And, just as the receptionist had said, apartment 11 was the sixth on the left. Hanayo rang the buzzer, and then waited.

Silence reigned as the two of them waited for the assistant to arrive. It was punctuated occasionally by sounds from inside the apartments, like someone making breakfast or vacuuming, or by either Maki or Hanayo coughing or remarking on something. Other than that, it was quiet. Until, from the opposite end of the hallway, the unmistakable sound of an elevator dinging sounded, and a woman with orange hair rushed down to see them.

“Hello, very sorry for the wait!” she breathed, “I was almost late today and I was handling something that I couldn’t stop for like a minute after I heard your buzzer and–!” The woman took a deep breath and smoothed herself down, almost dropping her clipboard in the process. “Anyway! I’m Takami Chika, the landlady, Miss Ohara Mari’s, assistant!” Chika paused to shake Maki’s and Hanayo’s hands. “Or one of them anyway. She kinda has to have a few for running a complex as big as this…! People mistake it for a hotel sometimes. Oh!” she gasped, “How could I be so rude? What are your names? And please, allow me to let you in!” She pulled out a key from her pocket and unlocked the apartment. After stepping in, Maki spoke up.

“I’m Nishikino Maki,” she introduced herself, “And this is my… friend, Koizumi Hanayo.” Maki bit her lip and twirled her hair as she said the word “friend”. She hated lying about her and Hanayo’s relationship, but you could never gauge how someone would react. Hanayo glanced at Maki before responding.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” she said, bowing slightly. “We just graduated college and are looking for somewhere to rent together. We liked what we saw on the listing of this apartment, but we wanted to check it out for ourselves. Can you give us a tour?” As she spoke, she glanced around the apartment. Her initial impression was good. Of course, it was small, but it seemed very good otherwise. It was clean, and it had a good kitchen and living room space. There was a small hallway on the right of the door, which Hanayo guessed led to the bedroom and bathroom. Glancing back at Chika, Hanayo saw her write something on her clipboard before responding.

“Of course, Miss Koizumi!” she exclaimed, “I’d love to! Okay, so we’re in the living room right now. It’s pretty nice, with some nice soft carpeting and plenty of room for a big couch and a coffee table or a kotatsu or whatever you want. You could even put a little TV there if you have one! To the left and a little up is the kitchen.” Chika pointed at the little space. “It comes with a stove and a refrigerator, free of charge. There are quite a few cabinets to store things in, and you could add a separate pantry if you want! Okay, follow me.” The enthusiastic tour guide skipped over to the hallway Hanayo had seen before.

“There’s a small closet right here to store things in,” she pointed out, “And it has a little rack thing if you want to use it for coats and such. To the right is the bathroom–” she whirled to the right, “With a shower-slash-bath, a toilet, and a sink with underneath cabinet. Oh! And the mirror above the sink has a medicine cabinet. To the left you’ll find – drumroll, please – the bedroom! Let’s go inside.” Maki gave Hanayo a “this girl is crazy” look, which Hanayo replied to with a shrug, before following Chika in.

“Pretty spacious for a place like this, right?” the orange-haired woman asked. “I’d say you could comfortably fit two twin-sized beds in here, or one queen if you prefer,” Chika winked at the couple, who went wide-eyed and blushed. “with enough room for two small bureaus. In the back here is a closet, a little smaller than the one in the hall.” She let out a breath, then clapped her hands together. “And that’s the apartment! Is there anything else you’d like to check out?”

“Actually, yes,” Hanayo replied, “I have a list right here…” She fumbled in her purse for a second before pulling out her dutifully-written down list of things to check for in the apartment, as well as a pen. “Okay, affordable, check; see it first, check; landlord… Well, landlady I guess. Does she live here?”

“Oh! Miss Ohara!” Chika exclaimed, “She lives on the veeery top floor. She doesn’t interact with the residents much unless specifically asked for or if there’s a problem. It’s not like she doesn’t care, but she’s really busy. That’s why she hired us assistants! So if there’s anything you need, you’ll probably see us before her.”

“Assistants… before… Ohara… Got it.” Hanayo noted as she finished writing down everything Chika had said. “What’s next…”

“Didn’t Eli say something about the neighbors?” Maki chimed in, “If they’re really annoying we shouldn’t rent this place. Oh, and we should come back on a weekend night some time just to be sure nobody’s throwing any wild parties.”

“There are strict rules against too much noise,” Chika mused, “But I understand your hesitance. For nights and weekends you’ll have to set up an appointment to visit, so I can do that right now. How about Saturday night at 9pm? Will that work?” Hanayo glanced Maki, who was giving it thought.

“It’s Thursday now, so…” she muttered, “Yeah, that should work. We’re both off work by then and our visit shouldn’t be that long. What do you think, Kayo-chan?”

“Yeah, that’d be perfect!” Hanayo chirped, “That’s probably just the time we’d find any problems.”

“Awesomesauce!” Chika shouted, “Is there anything else you’d like to look at?”

“Yeah,” Hanayo responded, “I wanted to ask what utilities there are in the house and I wanted to check out the faucets and stuff to make sure they’re working.”

“Oh yeah!” the guide answered, “You won’t have to pay a water or electricity bill unless you use, like, a lot. We’ll tell you before we add it to your bill, too. If you use the heat or AC a lot you’ll have to pay for that. You’ll be allowed to have Wi-Fi, but you’ll have to pay for that, of course, as well as TV if you want it. That should about cover it.”

“I’ll test the faucets now,” Maki called from the kitchen. She turned on the hot water first, waited for it to heat up, and then turned on the cold. Everything seemed to be in order, so she moved to the bathroom. The sink worked as well, as did the shower and bath. A quick test of both flushes of the toilet confirmed that everything in the apartment worked. Satisfied, Maki returned to Hanayo’s side. “It all works.” she announced. “Could I check the heat and AC as well? I won’t go too much.”

“Yeah, sure!” Chika replied. “Check anything you want to.”

“In that case…” Maki started, “Kayo-chan, can you check the cabinets and drawers to make sure they all open correctly? I also want to look at the power outlets.” Hanayo nodded, and Maki turned to Chika. “Quality is very important to me, and I want to make sure everything is in working order before agreeing to anything.”

“I completely understand,” Chika stated, “Go ahead.”

A quick search of the apartment found the thermostat, which Maki began to toy with. Meanwhile, Hanayo went around the apartment seeing which doors and cabinets and such worked and which ones didn’t. Most of them seemed to be in working order, although some were a little more difficult to open than others (which Hanayo dutifully noted in her notebook, also taking pictures of the offending objects). The two of them assessed where the power outlets were, mentally making plans of where to put their furniture. After a half-hour of looking around the apartment, the couple’s investigations were finished.

“I have a really good feeling about this place!” Hanayo beamed to Chika.

“I’m so glad to hear that!” the assistant responded, “If you want to get started on the paperwork now I’d be happy to–”

“I’d like to see this place Saturday night before we start anything,” Maki interrupted, “I don’t want to take any chances with our first apartment.”

“O-of course!” Chika stuttered, “I understand! Is it okay if I put you in as interested, though…?”

“Yeah, I guess,” Maki replied flippantly.

“Maki-chan…” Hanayo chided softly, “No need to be like that.”

“Sorry,” Maki apologized, “I just don’t want to be too hasty. If we agree to start living here and we discover something that we can’t live with…”

“I get it,” Hanayo answered, “But…” she dropped her voice to a whisper, “They might not want to rent to us if we seem rude.” She raised her voice back up again and looked to Chika. “We’d love for you to put us down as interested. We have to go now, but we’ll be back Saturday night at nine.” Hanayo bowed. “Thank you so much for showing us the apartment!”

“Yes, thank you,” Maki added.

“It was no problem!” Chika chirped, “We look forward to seeing you then, and have a good day!”

The couple exited the apartment in good spirits. Hanayo felt very hopeful, with Maki not as much but more content about the place than she had been before. At this point in their day, around 10, they both had to take off to go to work. At the entrance to the apartment complex, they kissed, and departed for the day.

–

Saturday night couldn’t have come slower. An hour passed before the both of them had returned from work that day before they could even depart. In fact, they even left a little early to reach the Ohara Apartment Complex. Upon their arrival, Chika was there to lead them through not only their floor but also the above and below floors. They were introduced to a few of their potential neighbors, and found that everything seemed pretty good. No drunks wandering the hallways, no crazy-loud music, nothing that could be a deal-breaker for either of them. Even Maki seemed satisfied.

“If you two want to start the paperwork to rent the place, you can swing by tomorrow morning!” Chika exclaimed, “If you do start tomorrow, I think we can have you moving in in two weeks. How’s that sound?”

Hanayo turned to Maki with one of the biggest grins she’d ever given on her face. Maki returned it with a small smile.

“I guess it can’t be helped,” Maki answered, “We’ll be by at 8:30 tomorrow morning to start filling out the paperwork.” She gave a loving look to Hanayo, who wrapped her arm around Maki’s.

“Awesome!” Chika replied, “I’ll see you then!”

On the way back, Maki and Hanayo decided that it was a time for celebration. They headed to their local supermarket and bought a nice bottle of sake to share. While they walked to their dorm, Hanayo noted something.

“You know…” she began, giving Maki a shy smile, “Nozomi and Eli told us to look at more than one place. We didn’t exactly do that.” Maki shrugged in response.

“Eh, I was impatient,” she responded, “And I didn’t want to go live with my parents after the university kicked us out for staying too long, you know? Better to be quick.” She looked at Hanayo who had stopped. “Besides, that place wound up being better than I expected. I don’t think we really need to look anywhere else.” They continued on their way after that, only stopping to be let in. As soon as they were inside, they set the sake down and got their serving set out.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Hanayo continued, “If we had waited too much longer, we’d have gotten booted out. Speaking of which, we should give the dorm office notice that we’re going to leave.” She took a sip of her sake, which warmed her throat nicely.

“I’ll do that after we get back tomorrow,” Maki replied, “After I have another cup of the sake I’m gonna start making a list of what we need for the apartment.”

“Good idea!” Hanayo noted, “I’ll make one too. We can combine them later. The only thing I’m worried about is the furniture…” She looked down, a worried look crossing her face. Maki placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up.

“I’ll ask my parents if they have anything we can take,” Maki supplied, “You should do the same. I’m sure your mom will have something.” Hanayo gave a warm smile.

“Okay,” she replied softly, moving her head to Maki’s arm. They shared the next few minutes in a comfortable silence before going to make their lists. Before long, they were finished and ready to go to sleep. The couple fell asleep holding hands, whispering “I love you”s until it faded to incomprehensibility.

–

The next two weeks passed in a blur. Their paperwork passed easily, and the first month’s rate was paid a week in advance of moving in. The couple’s parents were more than willing to give them old furniture, from beds to couches to simple plates and glassware. All their friends came to a celebration hosted by Nozomi and Eli to congratulate the couple on their first apartment. And, before they knew it, the move-in day had come.

As movers hired by Maki’s mom worked around them, Hanayo and Maki stood at the doorway to their new house. They held hands and smiled, then looked at each other before Hanayo took a step forward.

“Wait,” Maki interrupted, “Give me your leg and put your arm around my shoulders.” Giving a quizzical look, Hanayo did so. “Okay, now jump. I’ll catch your other leg.” After she did that, Maki gave her a kiss. Then she paused. Looking away and blushing, she explained. “I wanted to carry you over the threshold to our first home together.” Hanayo beamed wider than even that day two weeks ago.

“I love you, Maki-chan,” she whispered.

“I love you too,” Maki replied, and stepped through the doorway to their apartment.


End file.
